Cooperating to safeguard water can power, sustain peace: UN chief

New York [US], March 23 (ANI/WAM): Cooperating to safeguard water can power and sustain peace and water stewardship can strengthen multilateralism and ties between communities, and build resilience to climate disasters, according to the UN chief.
"It can also drive progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals - which are the foundation of peaceful societies - including by improving health, reducing poverty and inequality, and boosting food and water security,'' said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a message on World Water Day, held on 22 March every year since 1993, to focus on the importance of freshwater.
''Action for water is action for peace. And today it is needed more than ever.''
''Our world is in turbulent waters. Conflicts are raging, inequality is rife, pollution and biodiversity loss are rampant, and, as humanity continues to burn fossil fuels, the climate crisis is accelerating with a deadly force - further threatening peace, Guterres remarked.
''Water for peace is the theme of this year's World Water Day. Achieving it relies on far greater cooperation. Today, 153 countries share water resources. Yet only twenty-four have reported cooperation agreements for all their shared water. We must accelerate efforts to work together across borders, and I urge all countries to join and implement the United Nations Water Convention - which promotes managing shared water resources sustainably,'' he added.
Let's commit to work together, to make water a force for cooperation, harmony and stability, and so help to create a world of peace and prosperity for all, he concluded.
World Water Day, held on 22 March every year since 1993, is an annual United Nations Observance focusing on the importance of freshwater.
World Water Day celebrates water and raises awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water. It is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis. A core focus of World Water Day is to support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030. (ANI/WAM)